TONIGHT’S GAME:
The Rangers will face-off against the Washington Capitals at Madison Square Garden (6:00 p.m. — TV: NBC Sports Network; Radio: ESPN 98.7), in the second game of their three-game homestand. The Blueshirts currently rank third in the Atlantic Division standings, and rank eighth in the Eastern Conference, with a record of 7-5-1 (15 pts). The Rangers enter the contest having been defeated by the New York Islanders, 4-3, in the shootout on Thursday at Madison Square Garden, to end their three-game winning streak. The Blueshirts have now registered at least one point in eight of their last 11 contests (7-3-1) after dropping the first two games of the season. The Capitals enter the contest with a 5-8-1 (11 pts) record to rank 15th in the Eastern Conference, and have won their last three games. Following the contest, the Rangers will conclude their three-game homestand when they face-off against the Montreal Canadiens on Tuesday, Feb. 19, at Madison Square Garden (7:00 p.m.), in an Original Six matchup.

RANGERS vs. CAPITALS:

All-Time: 85-86-18-5 overall (47-38-9-2 at home; 38-48-9-3 on the road)

2013: Tonight is the first of three meetings this season, and the first of two meetings at Madison Square Garden

Last Season: New York was 2-2-0 overall (1-1-0 at home; 1-1-0 on the road). The Rangers out-shot the Capitals, 129-87, including a 47-24 advantage in the third period. Ryan Callahan led the team with four assists and five points in the season series, while Brian Boyle and Ruslan Fedotenko tied for the team-high with two goals. Henrik Lundqvist was 2-1-0 with a 3.00 GAA, and Martin Biron was 0-1-0 with a 4.01 GAA.

The Rangers have won five of their last seven regular season games against the Capitals, out-scoring Washington, 26-14, over the span

New York is tied for fourth in the NHL with a 5-2-1 (11 pts) record at home; Washington is tied for 22nd in the NHL with a 2-4-1 (5 pts) mark on the road

The Rangers are 2-0-0 vs. the Southeast Division this season; the Capitals are 1-2-1 vs. the Atlantic Division this season

New York lists two former Capitals on their roster: Steve Eminger (2002-03 – 2007-08); Jeff Halpern (1999-00 – 2005-06; 2011-12)

SPECIAL TEAMS:The Blueshirts’ penalty kill has held opponents scoreless in each of the last four contests (12 times shorthanded). New York has posted a record of 3-1-1 when holding opponents scoreless on the power play.Power Play: The Rangers tallied one goal in four power play attempts (6:58) on Thursday vs. the Islanders. New York ranks 29th overall (5-48, 10.4%) and are tied for 25th at home (4-28, 14.3%). The Rangers are 1-6 (7:05) in five-on-three situations (last — 2/14 vs. NYI), and 0-0 (0:00) when four-on-three. Shorthanded goals allowed (0).Penalty Killing: The Blueshirts held the Islanders scoreless in one attempt (2:00) on Thursday at Madison Square Garden. New York is tied for 10th overall (44-53, 83.0%) and ranks 14th at home (28-34, 82.4%). The Rangers are 2-2 (3:12) in three-on-five situations (last — 1/29 vs. PHI), and 2-2 (1:57) when three-on-four (last — 1/31 vs. PIT). Shorthanded goals for (1): 1/20 vs. PIT (Nash).Four-on-Four: New York did not tally/yield a goal in one four-on-four situation (5:00) on Thursday vs. the Islanders, and are now minus-1 in 10 four-on-four situations (18:35) this season. Four-on-four goals for (1): 1/23 vs. BOS (Gaborik). Four-on-four goals allowed (2): 1/20 vs. PIT (Letang); 1/23 vs. BOS (Horton).

SOUTHEAST FEASTThe Rangers have posted a record of 17-3-2 in their last 22 games against Southeast Division opponents, including a 15-3-2 mark against the Southeast Division last season. The Blueshirts have out-scored their Southeast Division opponents, 75-45, over the span.

GARDEN DEBUT
Rangers’ rookie J.T. Miller notched two goals while making his Madison Square Garden debut on Feb. 7 in a 4-1 win against the New York Islanders. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last Ranger (rookie or otherwise) to tally multiple goals in his MSG debut was Chris Kontos in a 6-2 win against Detroit on Jan. 3, 1983. Miller (19 years, 330 days) is the youngest Ranger to tally multiple goals in a single game since Alex Kovalev posted a hat trick on Dec. 27, 1992, at the age of 19 years, 307 days.

EARLY ADVANTAGEThe Rangers have registered at least a point in every game when scoring the first goal this season, posting a record of 5-0-1 in those contests, compared to 2-5-0 when allowing the game’s first goal. The Blueshirts have posted a 5-0-1 mark when leading after the first period, and are 5-0-0 when leading after the second period.

SHOOTING GALLERY
The Blueshirts have posted a record of 4-1-1 when out-shooting their opponents, which is tied for eighth in the NHL. The Rangers are 3-4-0 when being out-shot by their opponent.

A BROADWAY HIT
The Rangers rank second in the NHL in hits (388) this season, led by captain Ryan Callahan who is tied for eighth in the league with 43 hits. Brian Boyle ranks second on the team and is tied for 14th in the NHL with 41 hits, while Marc Staal leads all Rangers defensemen and is tied for 24th in the league overall with 36 hits.

THE HOT LIST:
The Rangers have registered at least one point in eight of their last 11 contests (7-3-1) after dropping the first two games of the season
The Blueshirts enter the contest with a four-game point streak (3-0-1), and have out-scored their opponents, 16-9, over the span
The Rangers’ penalty kill has held opponents scoreless in each of the last four games (12 times shorthanded)Henrik Lundqvist — is 6-3-0 with a 2.10 GAA and a .922 Sv% in his last nine games; has held opponents to two goals or less in five of his last eight games (5-3-0, 1.99 GAA, .926 Sv% over the span)Carl Hagelin — enters the contest with a three-game point streak (four goals, two assists over the span), including a career-high, three-game goal streak, and has tallied eight points (five goals, three assists) in the last six gamesDan Girardi — enters the contest with a career-high-tying, three-game point streak (one goal, three assists over the span)Rick Nash — enters the contest with a three-game point streak (one goal, three assists over the span), including a three-game assist streakMarc Staal — four assists in the last four gamesRyan McDonagh — three points (one goal, two assists) in the last four gamesMarian Gaborik — 10 points (seven goals, three assists) in eight home games

He moved to the US when he was 14 and most of his hockey development was fostered here, so I can’t imagine him having such a connection to Austria in that regard, and you’re ensured little to no international success with Austria.

If Vanek sees himself as Austrian (and that’s where he went back to play during the lockout), can’t blame him for representing his country. Kind of good to me that he hasn’t “chosen” another country just to increase his chances of winning.

why do I get the feeling Nash is hurt, won’t play tonight and will hear something about it from tortarella at 4:45pm today. I hope it isn’t a concussion, if it is and Nash is out for a length of time the rangers will be in big trouble.

I do not like this stupid “no hands” on the faceoff rule. Why does the game need more moronic penalties to slow it down? It’s all just another attempt by the NHL to make this league have games that are 21-18 style football scores.

Emrick makes me gag. “Shot stopped by the paraphernalia of Brodeur.” “Waffleboarded to the corner!” “Used his shillelagh!” “Oooooh, and how did that not go in?” “And play continues!” All with a voice like a castrated flute.

Comn – I was looking through names of old time hockey players couple weeks ago and noticed how many of them had nicknames you don’t hear anymore, like “Red,” “Goose,” “Ulcers,” “The Rat,” “Moose,” “Cyclone,” etc.